HIGH SCHOOL RULES DESIGNED TO PROMOTE SPORTSMANSHIP

Although the sportsmanship guidelines set by the Missouri State High School Activities Association are extremely specific, they can be summed up in one sentence: Fans should cheer in support of their team, not against the other team.

Creating a positive environment is vital to the values athletic programs at the high school level are designed to instill, according to area high school athletic directors.

MSHSAA regulations basically serve two purposes: To protect players, coaches and officials from verbal abuse; and to ensure the safety of participants and spectators.

But there is no underlying effort to stifle enthusiasm. Instead, the intent of MSHSAA is to channel enthusiasm in a positive manner.

"Have a good time and yell and cheer but in support of your team," said Cape Girardeau Central High athletic director Terry Kitchen.

But he pointed out that school administrators have to use "common sense" when enforcing the rules.

"If you try to react to every comment you'd go bananas," said Kitchen.

Spontaneous reaction to a play or a call is appropriate; continued jeers are not.

"We let students try to have a good time but if we notice something that is detrimental to high school athletics then we have to handle it," said Kitchen.

Said Jackson High athletic director Kevin Bohnert, "You have to look at the situation. If it is a spontaneous thing that starts and is over in a few seconds you don't want to get a situation where you make a mountain out of a molehill."

Notre Dame High athletic director Chris Janet said fan behavior reflects directly on the school.

"We really try to crack down on conduct because as a team you represent Notre Dame High School and when people watch how you behave on the court it reflects on the whole Notre Dame community," Janet said.

Notre Dame this year joined a campaign called "Speak Out for Sportsmanship" which promotes creating a more positive environment at athletic events.

Notre Dame's goal for fans and players is "be gracious as winners or losers," according to Janet.

"Adversity is hard to handle sometimes and a lot of times it's easy to handle adversity by shifting the blame to other people -- the officials or the opposition," Janet said. "We feel to do that is to focus away from the positive and react negatively to adversity."

Such rules are needed, according to Kitchen, because sometimes fans get so involved in the action and respond so powerfully that dire consequences can result.

"There have been cases where fans getting caught up in a ballgame have assaulted officials," Kitchen said. In one such incident in St. Louis, an agitated fan attempted to run down an official with an automobile following a game.

MSHSAA regulations go far beyond setting appropriate verbal behavior. Safety considerations are taken into account as well. Among prohibited items are confetti and hand-held posters, which have been deemed potential fire hazards.

Also forbidden is the common practice of stomping on bleachers.

"Stomping bleachers is illegal in high school sports because of the safety factor," Kitchen said. "There have been cases where stomping on bleachers has caused them to collapse plus the other reason is wear and tear."

One thing that often upsets fans when the rules are enforced is that although the MSHSAA guidelines apply statewide, not every school enforces them to the same degree.

"We might tell our kids they can't stomp on bleachers or use a megaphone here but then they go to, say, Poplar Bluff and see their fans doing it and they wonder," Bohnert said.

Some of the rise in bad sportsmanship can be traced to behaviors fans see in professional and college athletics which they then attempt to emulate.

"ESPN has been great for professional sports and great for college sports," Kitchen said, relating a comment he heard at a recent athletic directors convention, "but has been one of the biggest problems for high school sports."

With highlight reels often focusing as much on coaches getting out of hand with officials and trash-talking players as actual game action, unruly behavior has a trickle down effect.

"High school students see that and want to do the same thing and that is not acceptable in high school sports," Kitchen said.

Janet pointed out that some of the most prominent people in the community who attend Southeast Missouri State University basketball games mount vicious verbal attacks against officials, which sets a bad example for younger fans.

"When you have abusive behavior by fans it is counter productive to what you're trying to teach," Janet said.

Adults getting abusive at high school games causes a situation which poses a more sensitive problem for administrators because adults are not as easy to discipline as students.

Kitchen said that when adults are causing problems the first step is to try to quietly handle the situation without causing the person embarrassment. If the fan persists, stronger action can be taken. Game officials, for example, have the power to remove disruptive fans.

Janet said that it is the duty of fans to police their own behavior.

"You have got to have other fans who aren't afraid to tell someone that they are out of line," Janet said.

At Jackson, persistent disruptive behavior can lead to permanent banishment from school events, something that Bohnert has occasionally been forced to do.

"You have got to keep in mind that these are high school athletic competitions; this is not professional sports," Bohnert said.